Tipu Sultan was known as “Tiger of Mysore” because of the brutality with which he defended his realm. At a recent auction in London, his bedchamber sword sold for the staggering sum of 140 crore.
At a recent auction in London, the bedchamber sword of Tipu Sultan, who ruled Mysuru in the 18th century, was sold.
The sword fetched a whopping amount of 14 million pounds, which is equivalent to $17.4 million or Rs. 140 crore. Bonhams managed the auction, and said the price reached on Tuesday was seven times more than the estimate.
Furthermore, Bonhams argued that the sword was the most important of the weapons that had demonstrated a personal link with the king. Tipu Sultan rose to prominence during the late-nineteenth-century wars. Between 1775 and 1779, he fought in a number of fights against the Marathas.
The sword, which was found in the private quarters of Tipu Sultan’s palace, has a remarkable past, and unparalleled craftsmanship.
It should not have been surprising that there was such heated rivalry between two phone bids and one bidder in the room. In a statement, Nima Sagharchi, the group head of Islamic and Indian Art at Bonhams, expressed her happiness with the decision. “We are overjoyed with the outcome.”
Tipu Sultan’s aggressiveness in defending his dominion earned him the moniker “Tiger of Mysore.”
According to the Bonhams website, he was a pioneer in the use of rocket artillery in war and helped transform Mysore into India’s most active economy.
